Starting a Monk

slimjimosu · 03-25-2003, 09:40 PM

Greetings. I'm starting a new game with a monk and have never used one before. Are there any stat issues/requirements? I thought I remember reading that wisdom has some effect for a monk (magic resistance?) but I couldn't find anything to support or deny this. I've tried the search feature but didn't really get what I was looking for. I could be wrong and I am thinking of a Ranger or something. Anyways I figured that Str, Con, and Dex are important. Is it valuable to roll to try to improve my other stats above like 10? Will they have any class specific effects for the monk? Thanks.

BTW - This is my first post but I've been lurking around the board for several months now. I used to post at other sites but they either closed down (walkthrough-online) or all the conversation dried up (DB Forge). This is a great site, I love having new stuff to read every time I log on. I hope to post more often now that I got my registration through.

SixOfSpades · 03-25-2003, 09:56 PM

Power-wise, Monks have only 3 stats:
STR: 18
DEX: 18
CON: 16
INT: who cares
WIS: makes no difference
CHA: could be anything

Monks are good (very weak when starting out, but gain a few levels and you'll be happy), the only thing I don't like about them is that they're all the same: If you tell me what level a Monk is and how many people are in the party, I (or any other experienced gamer) can pretty much tell you everything about them except the gender.

Xero279 · 03-25-2003, 10:24 PM

[img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img] Well, Welcome to IW slimjimosu! [img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img]

But yes, as Six said, monks are very good. in fact, at high levels, their quivering palm move has been known to one-shot legendary monsters...

Gangrell · 03-25-2003, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Xero279:
[img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img] Well, Welcome to IW slimjimosu! [img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img]

But yes, as Six said, monks are very good. in fact, at high levels, their quivering palm move has been known to one-shot legendary monsters...

Myself of all people have experience in that area

Welcome to IronWorks Slimjimosu [img]graemlins/cheers.gif[/img]

Dundee Slaytern · 03-25-2003, 11:58 PM

Hmmmm... just to expand on the statistics thing. If you want a powergaming Monk with no penalties, you can use the following.

STR: 18
DEX: 18
CON: 17
INT: 10
WIS: 10
CHA: 08

Thorfinn · 03-26-2003, 12:13 AM

Or, alternatively, crank that Charisma down to 3, knowing full well that within 20 minutes of leaving Chateau Irenicus, you can have an item to bump that to 18.

I find a 3 Charisma to be handy for good characters. If you really don't want to initiate combat, take off the item and get back into their LOS. Amazingly, a -5 Reaction often makes them attack you. (My Barbarian party leader one game had a Charisma of 2, for a whopping -9 Reaction.)

[EDIT]
Dundee, why the 17 CON?
[/EDIT]

[ 03-26-2003, 12:15 AM: Message edited by: Thorfinn ]

Dundee Slaytern · 03-26-2003, 12:27 AM

17 CON? A powergamer thinks ahead.

While a CHA of 3 is fine and dandy, I vastly prefer a no penalty of 8. Ring swapping is a pain.

Thorfinn · 03-26-2003, 12:43 AM

Yes but I feel badly attacking the Kobolds in the sewers when they are blue. And the few times I have had a point man with a normal Cha, they do not attack, yet with a Cha penalty, they always do, and I can kill them with a clear conscience.

Butterfingers · 03-26-2003, 01:11 AM

My Monk was not made with Powergaming in mind. She was rolled to be a Monk. As in the humming chanting meditating Monk.

I wanted a random roller, so, I rolled stats for a while with out changing any numbers. I let everything fall where it may. It took a while to get a roll I was happy with, but, the numbers were not altered. Finally, I rolled:

Str 10. This was only a problem at first. Crappy THAC0. Girdle fixed it.
Dex 16. It's workable. Not perfect, but, it works.
Con 12. Could have been better, but, I really liked this over all roll.
Int. 15. I can pound Mindflayers with impunity. Monks should be smart.
Wis17. I was hoping for an 18, but, the over all roll was GOOD.
Chr 14. It works. I wanted higher natural chr actually.

Now, I know I could have changed a few stats and would have had a killer perfect character. However, I have a good character with good roleplaying potential. She is obviously more of a mental sort of Monk, brainy, wise, and rather good looking I might add. She is not all that strong, nor is she all that tough. She is a glass tiger. A paper cannon. You know what? It don't matter. With Stunning Blow, very few things can touch her. If I need more life, I can swap a girdle for a moment (Hey... A girl needs a good wardrobe) and bring Con to 18. As I have found, physical stats actually don't mean squat for a Monk... She is more then capable of Kung Fu Karatesizing someting into meaty bits... Even with less then perfect physical stats. She really shines against Mages and Mindflayers. She cleared out a certain hideout in Athkatla all by her lonesome, with the party safely tucked away. She has kicked the holy living crap out of all manner of things, dragons, vampires, and she is my primary golem slayer. Her weapon focus other then fists is mosty darts and throwing daggers.

Don't believe the hype... Monks don't have to be physical, they can focus the power of the mind as well [img]smile.gif[/img]

Dragonshadow · 03-26-2003, 05:34 AM

My monkl was my most sucsessful character...
Untl the whole of my C drive got wiped, I had to re install BGII, and I had lost everything.
*sob sob*

03-25-2003, 09:56 PM	#2
SixOfSpades Dracolisk Join Date: September 16, 2001 Location: Bellingham, WA, USA Age: 46 Posts: 6,901	Power-wise, Monks have only 3 stats: STR: 18 DEX: 18 CON: 16 INT: who cares WIS: makes no difference CHA: could be anything Monks are good (very weak when starting out, but gain a few levels and you'll be happy), the only thing I don't like about them is that they're all the same: If you tell me what level a Monk is and how many people are in the party, I (or any other experienced gamer) can pretty much tell you everything about them except the gender. __________________ Volothamp's Comeuppance Everything you ever needed to know about the entire Baldur's Gate series......except spoilers.

03-25-2003, 10:24 PM	#3
Xero279 Symbol of Cyric Join Date: May 12, 2002 Location: Atlanta Age: 36 Posts: 1,360	[img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img] Well, Welcome to IW slimjimosu! [img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img] But yes, as Six said, monks are very good. in fact, at high levels, their quivering palm move has been known to one-shot legendary monsters... __________________ <br /> <img border=\"0\" alt=\"[music04]\" title=\"\" src=\"graemlins/music04.gif\" /> Live to Rock, Rock to Live <img border=\"0\" alt=\"[rocking2]\" title=\"\" src=\"graemlins/rocking2.gif\" /> <br />[url]\"http://www.livejournal.com/users/Xero279\" target=\"_blank\">...From The Mind of Xero</a>

03-26-2003, 05:34 AM	#10
Dragonshadow Quth-Maren Join Date: February 17, 2003 Location: Portsmouth Age: 34 Posts: 4,145	My monkl was my most sucsessful character... Untl the whole of my C drive got wiped, I had to re install BGII, and I had lost everything. sob sob __________________ aka Loc der Graf, Quillruke

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03-25-2003, 09:40 PM	#1
slimjimosu Dungeon Master Join Date: March 8, 2003 Location: Ohio, USA Age: 45 Posts: 75	Greetings. I'm starting a new game with a monk and have never used one before. Are there any stat issues/requirements? I thought I remember reading that wisdom has some effect for a monk (magic resistance?) but I couldn't find anything to support or deny this. I've tried the search feature but didn't really get what I was looking for. I could be wrong and I am thinking of a Ranger or something. Anyways I figured that Str, Con, and Dex are important. Is it valuable to roll to try to improve my other stats above like 10? Will they have any class specific effects for the monk? Thanks. BTW - This is my first post but I've been lurking around the board for several months now. I used to post at other sites but they either closed down (walkthrough-online) or all the conversation dried up (DB Forge). This is a great site, I love having new stuff to read every time I log on. I hope to post more often now that I got my registration through.

03-25-2003, 11:58 PM	#5
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	Hmmmm... just to expand on the statistics thing. If you want a powergaming Monk with no penalties, you can use the following. STR: 18 DEX: 18 CON: 17 INT: 10 WIS: 10 CHA: 08

03-26-2003, 12:13 AM	#6
Thorfinn Zhentarim Guard Join Date: February 24, 2003 Location: Indiana Age: 61 Posts: 358	Or, alternatively, crank that Charisma down to 3, knowing full well that within 20 minutes of leaving Chateau Irenicus, you can have an item to bump that to 18. I find a 3 Charisma to be handy for good characters. If you really don't want to initiate combat, take off the item and get back into their LOS. Amazingly, a -5 Reaction often makes them attack you. (My Barbarian party leader one game had a Charisma of 2, for a whopping -9 Reaction.) [EDIT] Dundee, why the 17 CON? [/EDIT] [ 03-26-2003, 12:15 AM: Message edited by: Thorfinn ]

03-26-2003, 12:27 AM	#7
Dundee Slaytern Ironworks Moderator Join Date: June 10, 2001 Location: Pasir Ris, Singapore Age: 41 Posts: 11,063	17 CON? A powergamer thinks ahead. While a CHA of 3 is fine and dandy, I vastly prefer a no penalty of 8. Ring swapping is a pain.

03-26-2003, 12:43 AM	#8
Thorfinn Zhentarim Guard Join Date: February 24, 2003 Location: Indiana Age: 61 Posts: 358	Yes but I feel badly attacking the Kobolds in the sewers when they are blue. And the few times I have had a point man with a normal Cha, they do not attack, yet with a Cha penalty, they always do, and I can kill them with a clear conscience.

03-26-2003, 01:11 AM	#9
Butterfingers Drizzt Do'Urden Join Date: November 30, 2002 Location: Five Flagons Inn Posts: 633	My Monk was not made with Powergaming in mind. She was rolled to be a Monk. As in the humming chanting meditating Monk. I wanted a random roller, so, I rolled stats for a while with out changing any numbers. I let everything fall where it may. It took a while to get a roll I was happy with, but, the numbers were not altered. Finally, I rolled: Str 10. This was only a problem at first. Crappy THAC0. Girdle fixed it. Dex 16. It's workable. Not perfect, but, it works. Con 12. Could have been better, but, I really liked this over all roll. Int. 15. I can pound Mindflayers with impunity. Monks should be smart. Wis17. I was hoping for an 18, but, the over all roll was GOOD. Chr 14. It works. I wanted higher natural chr actually. Now, I know I could have changed a few stats and would have had a killer perfect character. However, I have a good character with good roleplaying potential. She is obviously more of a mental sort of Monk, brainy, wise, and rather good looking I might add. She is not all that strong, nor is she all that tough. She is a glass tiger. A paper cannon. You know what? It don't matter. With Stunning Blow, very few things can touch her. If I need more life, I can swap a girdle for a moment (Hey... A girl needs a good wardrobe) and bring Con to 18. As I have found, physical stats actually don't mean squat for a Monk... She is more then capable of Kung Fu Karatesizing someting into meaty bits... Even with less then perfect physical stats. She really shines against Mages and Mindflayers. She cleared out a certain hideout in Athkatla all by her lonesome, with the party safely tucked away. She has kicked the holy living crap out of all manner of things, dragons, vampires, and she is my primary golem slayer. Her weapon focus other then fists is mosty darts and throwing daggers. Don't believe the hype... Monks don't have to be physical, they can focus the power of the mind as well [img]smile.gif[/img]

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